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Making a Difference with Resources and Networking to Achieve Next Level of Growth

REDWOOD CITY, CA – February 9, 2018 – Startup Grind today announced the induction of 50 Companies into the 2018 Global Class of Startups Program. This program was developed to provide greater recognition and awareness about innovative, rising entrepreneurial stars around the world.

The latest class represent an exclusive class of pre-seed and seed stage companies. Consideration included more than 6,000 startups. Of these applications, 130 were selected to represent the Startup Grind community across 80 countries. From the pared-down list of 130, the top 50 were inducted into the Global Startup Program for 2018 (see attached list).

Together, they have raised over $40 million. These innovative startups represent countries, such as Mauritius, Bangladesh, Australia, and Guatemala. Numerous U.S. states are represented in this new class of startups, including those headquartered in New York, Ohio, Wisconsin, Texas, Nevada, and California just to name a few.

In describing why these startups were selected and what the program is intended to achieve, Derek Andersen, Founder and CEO of Startup Grind, explained, “Our global class of 2018 startups have incredible talent, potential, disruptive technology, and opportunistic markets. In working with them, our goal is to help get them to that next level of innovation, strategic intent, and growth. We are providing “next step” education, exposure of the exhibition and world class-speakers plus access to the mentors and resources that can be gained through our network.”

Participating in this elite program yields numerous benefits. The startups class of 2018 has access to mentors, investors, and other resources within Startup Grind’s expansive network. They get access to the company’s global audience through media and onsite interaction at the annual Startup Grind Global Event. The event will be held February 12th through February 14th in Redwood City, California.

The program originally started out of a perceived gap in the amount and type of available assistance startups could access. According to Andersen, “The program has been a way to extend our network of global resources to help these innovative companies so they can tap into specific tools, knowledge, experience, and guidance that they may have been missing. We are here to help.”

For more information about those in this year’s Global Class of Startups Programs, please visit here.

About Startup Grind

Startup Grind is the largest independent startup community, actively educating, inspiring, and connecting 1,000,000 founders in over 400 chapters. We nurture startup ecosystems in 115 countries through events, media, and partnerships with organizations such as Google for Entrepreneurs.

The cornerstone of our global community is explored in the monthly events featuring successful local founders, innovators, educators and investors who share lessons learned on the road to building great companies. Founded in Silicon Valley, Startup Grind has hosted 1657 events and fireside chats during 2017.

To date, Startup Grind has helped millions of entrepreneurs find mentorship, connect to partners and hires, pursue funding, and reach new users.

Here are the winners of the Startup Grind 2018 Global Startup Program:

Acuspire -- Acuspire gives candidates and employers control over their qualifications and makes the connections happen automatically.

airCFO -- AirCFO is a cloud-based accounting and finance partner for startups.

ALIST -- ALIST is the world’s first social giving app. It partners with influential people and businesses to promote awareness of charitable efforts.

Aroma Bit Inc. -- Aroma Bit is the world's first odor imaging sensor that can capture and digitize any smell as visual pattern and aroma visualization solution.

BrightGuest Technologies, Inc. -- BrightGuest is a mobile messaging and marketing automation platform that enables brands to deliver dynamic mobile pages to their audience through without requiring an app download.

Calendar -- Creating the worlds leading Calendar for small business owners.

Cramstack -- Cramstack provides a platform to look up valuable data and organize it in the way the user desires.

About the Author

A businesswoman and entrepreneur, Deanna Rampton is Editor-in-Chief and content writer at Startup Grind, a community of over 300 Chapters in 120 countries designed to educate, inspire and connect entrepreneurs. Editor Due.com a company helping startups invoice for their work, and Freelance Editor Entrepreneur.com.